Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) looks at US ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman during a ceremony of receiving diplomatic credentials from foreign ambassadors at the Kremlin in Moscow on October 3, 2017.
US President Donald Trump’s envoy in Russia, who has been under pressure to resign in the wake of his boss’s summit with President Vladimir Putin, says he won’t step down.
US Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman responded Saturday to a call to resign by his family-owned newspaper.
In a piece published in The Salt Lake Tribune, which is owned by Hunstman’s brother, he had been urged to step down over Trump’s siding with Putin rather than the US intelligence community over Moscow’s alleged meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
“The laughter told me everything I needed to know,” the ambassador and former Utah governor wrote in a column Saturday. “It also underscores the fragile nature of this moment.”
He further cited his colleagues working in Russia, saying they “have neither the time nor inclination to obsess over politics, though the issues of the day are felt by all.”
“Their focus is on the work that needs to be done to stabilize the most dangerous relationship in the world, one that encompasses nuclear weapons, fighting terrorism, stopping bloodshed in Ukraine, and seeking a settlement of the seemingly intractable Syrian crisis,” Huntsman wrote. “Their dedication to service to their country is above politics, and it inspires me to the core. It is my standard.”
Meanwhile, members of Congress are mounting pressure on the White House to let them know what happened in the two-hour private meeting between Trump and Purlin.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker said he has “no idea” what Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov meant, when he said Wednesday that Trump and Putin had entered “important verbal agreements,” voicing concerns that the administration and the Kremlin were “setting up a second meeting so they can begin implementation
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